New York, New York! (14 page)

"You're back!" said Dad. (Duh.) "You made it home safely!" said Mom. (What did she expect?) "Did you, by any chance, visit the IBM Gallery of Science and Art?" asked the genius. (Oh, my lord.) "We did so much!" I exclaimed, deciding to ignore what they'd just said. "We went on a sightseeing tour — " "On a bus?" asked Janine.
"No, a boat. We circled Manhattan. Did you know it's an island? And for art class we went to Rockefeller Center and the Cloisters." "The Cloisters?" repeated my sister.
And for once, I was able to explain something to her.
Our big group of welcomers started to go home.
" 'Bye, Roomie!" I called to Stacey.
My other friends were calling back and forth to each other.
"See you tomorrow!" Mallory called to Jessi.
" 'Bye!" Jessi called back.
" 'Bye, Dawn!" I called.
" 'Bye, Mary Anne!" called Stacey.
" 'Bye, Claudia!" called Jessi.
" 'Bye, Stacey!" called Kristy., And then she added, "This is starting to sound like the end of The Waltons. " 'Bye, John Boy! 'Bye, Mama! 'Bye, Jim Bob!" I piled my junk into the back of our car. There was quite a bit more than when I had left. I mean, you have to buy souvenirs and go shopping when you're in New York. Isn't that half the point of being there?
At home, I proudly showed my family the work I had done at Falny. If I do say so myself, my portfolio was impressive.
"Claudia, this work is so different from most of your drawings," exclaimed Mom.
"Do you like it?" I asked anxiously.
"It's wonderful," said Mom and Dad.
And Janine added, "It's totally, um, what's the word? Oh, yeah. It's totally awesome." "I kept a diary, too," I said shyly. "Well, sort of. I didn't write in it every day. But I have a good record of what we did. And my friends kept track of what they did. When they give me their notes and stuff, I'll make an illustrated trip diary." Needless to say, Mom and Dad nearly keeled over with shock.
"What a wonderful idea," exclaimed Mom.
"I cannot wait to see the finished product," said Janine.
It took me a long time to finish my project. While I was working on it, the members of the BSC were keeping in touch with their New York friends. The mailman had his hands full for awhile: About the Author ANN M. MARTIN is a former editor of books for children and was graduated from Smith College. Her other books include Ma and Pa Dracula; Ten Kids, No Pets; Bummer Summer, and all the books in the Baby-sitters Club series. She lives in New York, New York, with her cat, Mouse, and her new kitten, Rosie.